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There's still a sharp split in opinion as to the merits of the Great 'Gas Out' protest scheduled for April 30, as demonstrated by this further sampling of reader comments (and my thanks go out to all who have written)...

I read your commentary, and somewhat agree with you. On the other hand,
and in concert with your analysis of the Great Gas Out, I fail to see where
the loss of a couple of refineries would affect the gasoline prices as
drastically as they've been affected. After all, we have refineries all
over the country and it seems that the loss of a couple of them would affect
the prices of gasoline about the same as the Great Gas Out would.

I received a different email re this subject. I don't have the copy as I
deleted it, then read your article. The idea was better. Instead of one
day, which you and I know will make no difference, the email purposed
thirty days at a time. First no one buys from Shell for 30 days, Then no
Arco for 30 days, and then the next until every company has been
boycotted. I bet 30 days of no sales will kick them where it hurts.

Coming from Europe 27 years ago when gasoline was @ $2.00 gl and seeing
it now
at over $4.00 the shrinking of cars has been noticeable! So: smaller
engine = less gas.
Good. Now less gas = double prices! You need gas, right? We haven't
gotten rid of the cars yet. So in the 27 years span who's been the
winner or the loser. I'll let you figure it out. However I must say
that, if we, the market, can devise a stratagem to impact it,
well let's do it! We must start somewhere. Could this be the first
step? I'm willing
to try it and get out my bike!

Response to all those who have responded already (because really, who are you
trying to convince?)

I see no reason NOT to join the protest. As you said in your editorial, this
is an entirely painless gesture. However:

OPEC is going to laugh their collective ass off when they hear about this. And
then they're going to raise the price even more. The only way they'll be
affected is if gas use here in the US is actually and permanently lowered.

So take the bus!

REALLY! You miss the point. Will we buy gas that day? Maybe, maybe not.
But this is not about affecting demand. It's about PROTEST. It's about
making a statement. Why do we were red ribbons, pink ribbons, yellow
ribbons? Why do we vote? Because that one vote makes all the difference?
Not.

The fact that the protest is being referenced in news reports and
Hoax/Rumor pages shows that it is effective. It's not about affecting
demand -- it's about making a statement. You noticed. So will the gas
companies. Will the prices change? Of course not. But if I forward this
message to everybody I know, it's much more effective than e-mailing the
oil companies.

Read the article on the Great Gas Out. Gas in the S.F. Bay Area went from
$1.01 at my station to $1.68. I read yesterday that reported "earnings for
the state oil refineries averaged 70 cent per gallon the week of April 12, up
27 cents per galon the week of March 1st. Surplus unleaded sold to
independants increased from 26 cents to 58 cents during the same time and for
two weeks was in the 75-77 cent range."

Maybe we can't stop buying the gas but when was the last time you
were in a station that didn't have a food mart? If everyone would stop
buying at the food marts that would hurt.

I am inclined to fall in line with your thinking on this. If we buy gas
the day after or the day before the Gas Out, what's the net impact on
the oil company? Nothing.

However, here in Connecticut, a gas station owner in Stamford, who is
the head honcho of some national gas station owner's group (wish I could
be more specific), has endorsed this protest as a way to show the oil
companies we're mad as hell and we're not gonna take it any more. I
heard an interview with the man on our venerable and respected NPR
station as part on 'Morning Edition' on 4/21/99 or 4/22/99. Apparently
this gentleman has requested the support of all his fellow gas station
owners in this protest. Let's see; he has requested that his
constituency voluntarily and dramatically reduce their income and
support him in biting the hand that feeds them all. I wonder if this
will hurt his chances for reelection to his post next time?

Anyway, this urban legend has gone mainstream.

The
Gas Out may have its roots in two things: 1) It may be an implicit
commentary by millions of drivers who know that they waste a lot of fuel
in riding for fun, inefficiently planned trips, etc; 2) those of us who
lived through the "gas shortages" of the 70's ultimately were told that
the real reason for lines at gas stations was because of a panic
mentality that caused people to more frequently top off half-full gas
tanks, resulting in an enormous gas supply on wheels that would not
normally exist. I agree that one day will not effect gas prices - that
would take months of concerted effort to fundamentally decrease the
amount of driving millions of Americans take for granted. Keep up the
good work on behalf of reason.

First of all, no one is suggesting that "we the people" are powerless. If you wish to assert your power, however, do it
in a logical way that will make a real difference, not some half-baked plan that is nothing more than a popular bit of
net-babble. In our last election, we had some of the lowest voter turnouts in history. GET INVOLVED, People. If an
extra million people hit the polls, perhaps this country could get a foreign policy that makes sense and then we could
affect what happens in the middle east.

Second, your beef is with OPEC, not Exxon, Mobil, Texaco, etc. Because of the smoothing effect of time and distance,
OPEC will never even catch wind of your plan. Remember they are supplying oil all over the world, not just to
America (yes folks, they have cars in other countries).

Third, do you honestly think that 10 million gallons of gas is even going to show up as a blip on Exxon's
spreadsheet? These companies are selling tens of BILLIONS of gallons of gas every day. Yes, we DO use up oil at
that rate. Not to mention the oil that goes to heating, lubrication, textiles, etc. Only a portion of the oil we buy from
OPEC goes to gas. Most goes to manufacturing, so you had better leave your sneakers home too.

Fourth, we get much of our fuel supply from Alaska, Mexico and many other places other than the middle east, so
there's even more smoothing.

Fifth, QUIT YOUR BITCHING! In Europe, Gas is selling for over $2.50 per litre! Try paying $10 a gallon and then tell
me about how the oil companies are gouging us! There is nowhere else in the world where you can get gasoline as
cheaply as you can in America. Its the main reason why we have such a love affair with our cars. Europeans ride
bikes and walk places, cars are just for trips. You don't see too many Expeditions and Suburbans in England, in fact a
Ford Escort is considered a mid-size.

Folks, use your brains! Just because someone throws some nonsense out on the Internet it doesn't mean that it is
true, or even makes sense. If you want to make a difference, get involved in the polical process and stop believing
everything that CBS news tells you. Pick up a newspaper! Read a book! Form your opinions based on facts, not the
opinions of others.

Ok, maybe it did start out as a hoax, but the great Gas Out is really
catching on. EVERYBODY I know, even if they don't have a computer, knows
about it. And about it not working, believe me, it will. Ok, so maybe
the gas thing will cause "no more than a blip on the oil producers' spread
sheets", but gas isn't the only thing people buy at gasoline stations. Do
you realize how many people buy food, cigarettes, car washes, and all
types of things from gasoline stations? If no one stops by to purchase
gas on a particular day, the gasoline stations lose A LOT of money by not
having customers buying these other things. It means no sales at the Gas
Station Subway or A&W, people will buy their cigarettes or beer elsewhere,
people will wash their cars somewhere else or do it at home, and so on.
It WILL hurt the gas companies.

I certainly hope the Great Gas Out is a success. The students of the
sixties could have held the same view as you have now. Where would we be
in that case? Protest is oftentimes healthy. Hopefully everyone does
listen to your suggestion to refrain from using vehicles that require
gasoline as fuel. That one day's sales of gasoline will be gone forever
even if everyone waited until the next day to buy their gas. Maybe the
masses will realize that they don't need as much gas as they thought. I
think the idea is a wonder-fuel one and I say to everyone, "on 30 April,
don't be fuel-ish, don't buy fuel."

After seeing that (much to my surprise) the majority of your readers
support the "Gas Out," I had to write and let you know that there are
definitely those of us out here who agree with you. The whole thing is
silly and irresponsible, in my opinion. All of the arguments you raised
are valid. To this I would add that 1) oil is a nonrenewable resource,
and we should really be focusing on conservation and alternative energy
sources rather than gobbling it up as cheaply as we can; and 2) if
people really want to pay less for gas, perhaps they should trade in
their SUV's for small, fuel-efficient cars and use less gas on a regular
basis rather than depending on the government to keep petroleum prices
artificially low or whatever it is they want. Now there's the way to
hit oil companies in the pocketbook, in my opinion. As you indicated,
it's ridiculous to complain about gas prices when they were $.75 to $.80
for a couple of months this winter and are now way back up to $1.00 or
$1.10 -- the price, if memory serves, that gas was at about 5 years ago
here (although I can speak only for the upper Midwest; maybe people in
CA or other places are getting hit harder). Also, when people aren't
being encouraged to walk, carpool, or take public transportation, the
same amount of gas will be purchased overall, and I doubt if the oil
companies will even notice that one day of lower profits over the long
run. I've received this e-mail from a couple of people who I thought
would be a little more sensible, so it must appeal to a lot of people.
I guess the idea of defeating the oil companies is pretty attractive,
but I agree with you that this is pretty much a pointless way to go
about it.